LAHORE, Sep 08 (APP):Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar has approved launching of Punjab Employment Scheme worth more than Rs 30 billion to provide soft loans on easy terms in the province.
Presiding over a meeting here, he said that the scheme was aimed at developing small and medium enterprises and restoration of corona-affected businesses in the province. Under the scheme, soft loan up to Rs 10 million would be provided for existing business or launch of the new venture. Transgender community along with men and women were eligible to apply as the rate of mark-up for womenfolk was kept less, he added.
Usman Buzdar ordered for launching the scheme in the current month as businesses had been affected due to coronavirus pandemic and the government was going to provide a major relief to them.
He ordered for further reducing the mark-up rate along with the processing of applications in the minimum possible time period. Special initiatives should be included in the scheme to boost the rural economy, the CM added.
The provision of soft loans facility would boost the industrial sector, he added.
Earlier, the CM was briefed about the salient features of the scheme and was informed that an online portal has also been created in collaboration with the Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB) for the purpose.
Provincial Minister Mian Aslam Iqbal, Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) Urbanisation, Chairman Planning and Development (P&D), secretaries of finance and industries departments attended the meeting while Finance Minister Hashim Jawan Bakht and the Bank of the Punjab (BoP) president participated through video-link.
